Christopher Columbus Perception

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How Columbus Viewed the New World Christopher Columbus is often regarded as one of the most important explorers in history, as he “discovered” the Americas. This, however, is not the full story. Many misconceptions about Columbus’ voyage are taught in schools, but this can be avoided by taking a closer look at primary sources from the time. Christopher Columbus’ discoveries are tainted with his true motives for the journey and his thoughts on the Native people, looking closer at his letter to Lord Sanchez reveals how he wished to be perceived, and how that should affect how we view him today. Upon Columbus’ arrival in the Americas, he famously mistook the land to be somewhere in Asia. This affected the way he interacted with the Indigenous Peoples. …show more content…
In his letter to Sanchez, he describes them “...like idiots, [they] bartered cotton and gold for fragments of bows, glasses, and jars...” showing his belief that they were intellectually inferior in regards to bartering (Columbus 191). This tells us that he never considered how their own economic and cultural values may differ from the ones he is used to. We can be sure of this not only from this one excerpt, but he also mentions how the Natives behaved upon the first arrival of the colonizers. He mentions that the people were so afraid of his men that even “...fathers forsook their children and the children their fathers.” Framing it in a way that suggests that the Natives were also morally inferior to the Europeans. It is important to not forget that Christopher Columbus had a mission to fulfill. He sought glory and riches in his endeavors, and in order to achieve these goals, he needed funding from Spain. The numerous letters and reports sent back to Europe were all a means to acquire better publicity and

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